Ex by regions
Field devices used in potentially hazardous areas must undergo different certification processes, depending on the economic area. Based on the three large economic areas of Europe, North America and China as well as the countries Australia and New Zealand, we show the respective certifications and their complexity.
The IECEx approval procedure for equipment forms a baseline. The certificates are used for local approval in order to obtain a local certificate, as necessary. In Australia and New Zealand, IECEx certificates are directly recognized.
European Union
Across the European Union, Directive 2014/34/EU specifies the basic health and safety requirements, as well as the conformity assessment procedures. The Directive leaves the technical specification of the requirements to the harmonized European standards. Certification is carried out by accredited bodies.
North America
The legal basis for North America is a combination of product standards, laws, fire safety regulations and electrical directives. The best known organizations involved are:
Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA)
American National Standard Institute (ANSI)
Underwriters Laboratories (UL)
FM Approvals (FM)
National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)
Canadian Standards Association
NFPA publishes the National Electrical Code (NEC) as ANSI/NFPA70.
The articles NEC500 - 505 deal with explosion protection specifically.
China
In China, there are new rules for Ex certification since October 2019 – the new CCC Ex certificate.
This certificate is needed to put hazardous area products on the market in China. However, NEPSI, IECEx and CNEx certificates remain valid. It is therefore possible to obtain the CCC Ex certificate on the basis of the above-mentioned certificates. The new regulations do not apply to all ex-products. Therefore, the manufacturer is obliged to contact the Chinese authorities to clarify the subject matter.
These three economic areas demonstrate the complexity of the certification process.
KROHNE offers a complete portfolio of field devices with approvals for all common types of ignition protection across all product areas. We will be happy to support you with our regional experts if you have questions on this topic.